[lovemypuppy]

I was scolded by the vet tech for giving my 11 week old boston terrier puppy a catfish skin chew (Beam, by The Honest Kitchen).

Initially the tech called it salmon and told me my puppy didn’t need fish oil. I corrected her, letting her know it was catfish skin chews and that I thought they were a good choice because they were more digestible than other chews out there (I ignored her comment on fish oil because I didn’t want to get into an argument with her). She said the fat content of the catfish skin chews was too high and would put my puppy at risk of developing pancreatitis. She also said to only give Nylabones.

I later discussed with a different tech at a different vet office hoping to get some clarification, but unfortunately they too were leery of the high fat content for the same reason. They added that small dog breeds, and BT in particular, were at increased risk of pancreatitis.

Has anyone else heard this in regards to Beams being too rich in fat for a puppy or dogs at risk of pancreatitis?

Do Beams actually have a high fat content? Looking at their packaging it doesn’t appear so (min protein 88%, min fat 4%, moisture 8%). The freeze dried Orijen treats we were giving for house training have quite a bit more fat. So now, I’m really confused on how much fat is OK.

• This topic was modified 10 years ago by lovemypuppy.
• This topic was modified 10 years ago by lovemypuppy.

[pugmomsandy]

Just looking at those numbers for Beams, it doesn’t appear to be a high fat item. You can also compare it to the Primal recipe you are currently feeding. How does Beams compare to that? In general, “puppy” recipes are higher in fat. Even Purina’s Focus Small Breed Puppy dry recipe has a minimum of 20% fat, and Purina is a large company that has veterinarians and nutritionists on staff. It would be interesting to know what food your vet would have recommended for your puppy to see how much fat is in that! I know that Beams are just a treat, but fat in food and treats are the same to me.

[lovemypuppy]

I get confused when comparing protein and fat % because it can look very different based on the moisture %, kwim?

• This reply was modified 10 years ago by lovemypuppy.

[lovemypuppy]

FWIW, my vet recommended Royal Canine Mini Small Breed for food and Nylabone for chews. I don’t give either of those to my pup.

[brit]

I have been giving Beams to my adult dog at least once a week with no issues. brit

[Naturella]

@lovemypuppy, I am not a BT pro, but I have a Jack Russell-Rat Terrier-looking mix of sorts (small dog at 15lbs), and I also fed him the Beams since 1 month after we got him, at about 5-ish, or 6 months. I probably would feed them to a younger puppy as well – they are a healthy and natural chew, and they really helped Bruno’s coat a lot! He probably didn’t get more than 3 in one week anyway as I was alternating with bully sticks, antlers, etc. So I probably wouldn’t worry about it. But maybe someone else will be able to chime in with better explanations.

[InkedMarie]

You sound like a smart dog owner….this tech seems a bit clueless: giv a Nylabone? lots of people do, I did many years ago but there are also lots of bad stories about them.

I use Beams, Wishes too. Not for a puppy but if I had a pup, I would. If I was you, I’d let what they say go in one ear & out the other. I don’t discuss nutrition with my regular vets, only my holistic vet. All know what I feed & they know I’m all set with nutrition.

[DogFoodie]

Here’s a great little dry matter basis converted I found. I use it all the time.

http://fnae.org/dmb.html?inputboxm=82&inputboxi=1&button.x=96&button.y=19&button=Click

[theBCnut]

Yep, ignore their “advice.” It’s silly to say a dry treat with 4% fat is high fat. Just because chicken skin is high fat doesn’t mean that every skin is. If it was 80% moisture and had 4% fat then you should be worrying, because it would be about half fat. Obviously, not the case here.

[lovemypuppy]

Thanks, DogFoodie. I bookmarked it so I can access it whenever I need.

The minimum protein is 88%, so wouldn’t that mean the max amount of fat possible would be 12%? Either way 4-12% fat isn’t very much.

I’m going to ignore their advice for sure, though based on other reasons, I’m giving these catfish skins a break (trying to sort out possible food intolerance/allergy). I really do feel like they are a good, healthy, simple treat and look forward to going back to them sometime in the future.

InkedMarie, I plan on involving a holistic vet soon. I just can’t feel 100% comfortable with a traditional vet that doesn’t see eye to eye with me on nutrition, so need to involve a vet with a more holistic approach, especially in regard to nutrition.

• This reply was modified 10 years ago by lovemypuppy.

[lovemypuppy]

The raw food that my pup eats is 31.25% fat, after converting to dry matter basis.

The catfish beams are around 4%, so not high in fat by any stretch of the imagination. Honestly, I don’t think either of the techs were familiar with Beams and just assumed fish skin = high fat.

I read that raw food needs to be no more than 60 calories per ounce, otherwise the fat content is too high. Our nuggets are 48 calories per ounce, but 31.25% fat seems kind of high. Hmmm. Always something more to learn or understand!

• This reply was modified 10 years ago by lovemypuppy.

[theBCnut]

Depending on the raw food, it may be 66% protein and 34% fat and still be ok, or 50%protein and 25% fat and 25% carbs and still be ok. You want fat to be about half of the protein level. Some dogs do better with higher fat though. My dogs do just fine with the fat level being 2/3 the protein level, but I don’t normally feed that high.

[Bobby dog]

BC:
Just curious, are these the fat %’s that you try to meet for the raw diet you feed your dogs?

[theBCnut]

I only feed half raw, and the fat level varies day to day. When I feed rabbit, the fat level is VERY low, because rabbit is a very lean meat. But when I feed mutton, I’m probably approaching that 34% mark, and with coconut oil and fish oil added in, I might pass it.

[Bobby dog]

Thanks BC!

[GSDsForever]

PBI — and I think the Beams are awesome, OP! —

Why would higher amounts of fat and this protein-fat ratio matter for healthy dogs?

Why couldn’t the fat be higher unless there is a specific risk to the breed or individual dog, past history of problems (etc.)?

In a human diet, I understand even 40% fat to be fine when it’s a healthy fat for us like (just as a human example) primarily extra virgin olive oil, then some Omega 3, some virgin coconut oil. And I think of dogs as even better equipped to handle specific types of fat and in high amounts.

[Author]

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